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Aug 9, 2002, 5:08pm

Hey, Binary. I got a score of 2230. I played for about 30-45 minutes. I
wonder what Maki and JerMe got for our tribe. Oh, I put up some trees
around the new Robego camp. The OP doesn't display the textures for me,
but oh well. If you want to expand the barrier or move it back, go
ahead. If you don't like it, please tgram me if you decide to delete it.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Aug 24, 2002, 3:29pm

I just wanted to say that I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to help much
with Robego's last challenge. When we all signed up for NGS, we could
select a certain week where we were allowed a period of absence from the
game. Well, this is my week.

Getting a telegram from BinaryBud, I just barely had enough time to see
what our SOS looked like, let alone ask other tribemates if we should
modify it, leave it alone, or what. I am moving this week and things
have been very hectic. I informed my other tribemates of my situation. I
won't be able to attend the Tribal Council, but Nornny contacted me and
told me that I can send him my vote, which I did.

This has been our first ever defeat in the game, and I'm a bit unhappy.
However, considering what objects we had and our time period, I can see
how we lost. I'll be back next week (unless I get voted off) and I'm
sure we will do better. Until then - long live Robego!

-Builderz

Sep 1, 2002, 3:08pm

I just wanted to sincerely apologize to all of my tribemates. I have
been absent from the game for two weeks. However, I *do* have several
good reasons as to why I was not at the challenges. Read below, and have
a good laugh at my expense.

Last week I wasn't there because I was moving into a dorm (well, it is
really a townhouse) for college. The move was on August 25th (Sunday).
If memory serves, that was when Robego had to go to council because of
their first lost. Well, I thought everything would be fine and dandy
after moving in. Boy, was I ever wrong.

When I got there, nothing worked (literally). There was no dial-tone on
the phone, no cable connection, and the high-speed Internet connection
(RJ-45 jack in my room) provided by the college was dead. I didn't have
a cell phone with me, either. In essence, I had no contact with the
outside world until the next day, when the phone lines started to work.

Now I got a dial-tone, but whenever I tried to dial a number, the phone
made a weird beeping noise. After some fairly long trial and error, it
seems I had to dial an '8' prefix (usually it is a '9' prefix on most
phone systems) to reach an outside line. So I called someone to make
sure the phone was working (and it was) and hung up. Then I tried my
RJ-45 jack again. Nope, didn't work. Not even a light on my NIC card was
lit. I thought that was odd, because it worked fine at home just a day
or two before. So I swapped out cables, fiddled with the jack, and
rechecked my networking settings. Nope, still no Internet, no e-mail, no
AW.

Out of boredom, I turned on the TV to see if the cable had been
activated yet. What do I see? Three lousy channels that are all full of
static. I tried again later in the day and finally I got more than three
channels. But it wasn't much better. Most of the channels had a "double
image" to them or were blurry. Sign. Then I tried to use the only "ISP"
software I had installed on my computer at the time, AOL dial-up. Yes,
it is unbearable slow. I have DSL at home and the college was *supposed*
to provide high-speed access to my housing unit, but it still isn't
working. So I pick two local numbers and start dialing (with the dumb
prefix number). No dial-tone again.

I scratch my head, unplug the line from my comp's modem and plug it back
into the phone. Now I *do* hear a dial-tone. To make a long story short,
it seems, for some very odd reason, I could only call numbers that were
from one city. So I finally got AOL working, slow as ever, on dial-up
speeds. I checked my e-mail (had over 100 spam messages), tgrams in AW,
etc. If I even could attend any challenges, it would be far too slow to
even be a use to my tribe.

I was a bit irritated that my RJ-45 jack still did not work (since
everyone else's did in my housing unit) so I called the Computer Lab. No
help. Then I called the Housing Office. Their tech will call me back. So
I waited. Tech finally called back and said he had "more important"
things to work on and someone on the morning shift the next day will take up
my problem. Great.

So the next day, after my classes, I walk over to the Housing Office and
go find a tech. He is just sitting on this nice, soft chair eating ice
cream. I tell him my problem and he walks up to my room with me to see
if he can fix the problem (still holding and eating his ice cream). He
checks everything I already checked the day before, tried to jam the
RJ-45 cable into the wall (it was already in as far as it could go), and
gives up. I asked him if there was any other place I could call or what
to do about the situation. His reply: "I don't know." Wonderful! So
then, just as he was about to leave, he spots an icon on my Windows
desktop of a certain game (which I installed, but hadn't yet played). He
then goes on (for literally thirty minutes) giving me a speech about the
game; how he was a beta tester of it, how the company took a year to
patch this or that, how everyone hated him because he was so good,
explained these dumb tactics and tricks, and bragged about having such
high "level" points or something. Obviously, I was new to the campus and
didn't want to insult anyone, but come on...this guy just would not shut
the heck up. I was polite, but wished he would just leave. Finally, he
left. And me, with *still* no RJ-45 jack.

If that wasn't bad enough, it just got worse. On Wednesday, I was just
about ready to go to a class, when "it" happened. It seems that some
maintenance worker was using a blow torch somewhere in our unit a little
too close to a fire alarm sensor. So the fire alarm went off. My
roommates and I all went outside and were greeted by someone that told us
it was just a drill, there was no fire. Okay, so we all go back inside.
Suddenly, I hear water running (as if someone was taking a shower). I
glance at both bathrooms in the hallway, but the doors are open and no
one is in them. Then I look at this locked door at the end of the hall
(which is *directly* across from my room). It appears the water is
coming from behind that door. I look down, and I see that the carpet is
damp. Sh*t!

To make a long story short, half of my room, half of another person's
room in my unit, half of the hallway, and half of one of the bathroom's
there were flooded. I was the first one to find the leak. Luckily, I
moved anything with a plug (all electric devices) to higher ground (my
desk, chair, bed, and tables) before it could get wet. The last thing I
was thinking about was missing my next class. But, the others in my unit
had nothing better to do, and in their great wisdom, unanimously thought
we should all go to class. So off we went, leaving the damp floor the
way it was.

The leak was fixed twenty minutes after it started and wet vacs and
commercial dryers were brought in to help (that should give you an idea
just how bad the leak really was). Since I have certain allergies (I'll
spare you the details), I went through literally half a box of tissues
because of the incident. I called my parents and they came to pick me
up. We had a long talk, and decided (for various reasons) that on-campus
life at my particular college was not right for me. I tried it, and it
didn't work out. Besides, a good deal of people commute to the college
anyway, so I'm not missing much. And who knows what else might happen or
break if I do stay there. Yesterday, we finally moved the rest of my
items back home. We are now seeking a refund for the housing.

So there you have it. After moving *twice* in one week, I'm finally back
home with my trusty DSL connection (which, might I add, worked perfectly
when I plugged the CAT5 cable into my comp's NIC card). I couldn't have
made this up if I tried. I'll try my best to attend the next meetings
for NGS. I hope you all had a better week than me.

-Builderz

Sep 16, 2002, 1:06pm

*Builderz boots up his comp1.rwx and starts writing*
<start>
NG Survivor Diary Entry Number X (I lost count)

Like Lioness, I am sad to see BinaryBud go. It seems my fellow Robego
members are dwindling even more in size. Last week I couldn't make the
challenge because of conflicting time issues. This week, I made both the
challenge (and won, due to Lioness falling) and tribal council. I had
the option to either keep my immunity or void the public vote. Nornny
asked what the others there at tribal council thought, and only Eric
said to not keep immunity because he was afraid the public would vote
for him. Well, I went with the majority (who can argue with the
majority? ;) and kept my immunity. It turns out that although Eric got
one or two votes, he was still safe in the game. I hope there are no
hard feelings because of my decision. This is going to become very
interesting over the next few weeks. Maki is now on the jury and will
help decide who is the ultimate survivor (when the time comes). Only
time will tell...

-Builderz
<end>

Sep 24, 2002, 1:20pm

Wait a minute...hold the phone. Weren't you the one that said you didn't
want any mirrors of your work? I downloaded at least two of your videos
several months ago and put them on my site. The next day, you said you
didn't want any mirrors, so I took them down. Now you say you do. Make
up your mind!

As for the AW3 video, it is very nice. However, I think you used that
"exploding sphere" effect a bit too much. Also, other video formats
besides WMV would be nice (DivX, QuickTime, RealVideo, etc). You should
try and make some money by doing custom videos for people.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Sep 26, 2002, 1:34am

Very, very nice. Now if you could only get AWI to run it as a TV ad...
;)

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Sep 27, 2002, 1:29pm

No, this isn't my diary entry, but I just wanted to clear something up.
Since Gandalf has been voted off of NGS, I feel that I can discuss this
openly now. There seems to have been a rumor going around that I was in
an alliance with Gandalf. I have also heard that he called me "weak" and
seemed to have been spreading lies about me. I can honestly say that I
*am not* and *never was* in any type of alliance, bond, or pact with
Gandalf. I just wanted to clarify that. For those who originally brought
this to my attention, I thank you.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Oct 21, 2002, 11:10pm

Like I told Norrny, anything is possible at this point in the game. I
find it ironic that Lioness voted for me, I voted for her, and now we
are both at the fate of the other tribe mates. ;) Let me just say that I
feel that I have become good friends with all of the remaining survivors
and I hope that we can all stay friends outside of the game (no hard
feelings).

Having said that, I would like to clear up something -- how I ended up
voting for Lioness. Since Ambi held immunity, I could only vote for
either Mod or Lioness. Since I felt they were both good friends, I
entered their names into a computer program that does several
calculations and then randomly spits out a name. Lioness' name appeared,
and that is who I voted for. I thought that this was the only fair way
to vote. I do not have anything against Lioness personally, that is just
the name the program outputted. As it turns out, if I hadn't voted for
Lioness, there wouldn't have been a tie, and I wouldn't be here typing
this right now.

As for my plea, what can I say? By now, the current survivors either
know me or they don't and have their own opinions regarding me as a
tribe mate in this game. They can swing their vote, come to a unanimous
decision, we could all end up with another tie on our hands and prior
votes will come back to haunt us, or a random player could be voted off.
Whatever the outcome, I hope that I have portrayed to my fellow tribe
mates (as well as the public) throughout these many weeks that I have
taken the game seriously and have played it ethically.

I have always tried my best to attend immunities and councils. I did not
spread slander about other tribe mates unless I heard through the
grapevine that one of them might have said something about me in the
first place. I always gave an honest reason and explained why I voted
for the players I did, unlike some other players who did not. I may not
have been at camp all of the time, but not everyone else has been,
either. I stopped by when I could and helped when help was needed. I
will say that for most (if not all) of the game, I have remained true to
myself and played honestly (I did not cheat). At this critical point in
the game, if those things don't mean something, then I'll happily take a
seat on the Jury and vote for a winner that I think does possess a
decent sense of morals and the other qualities I mentioned above.

Nornny always jokes that I slipped "under the radar" of the other tribe
mates. True, the last council was the first time I had votes cast
against me, but I always did my best to say hello to others, chat, and
be an active player in the game and at camp. I admit, I did not expect
to make it this far in the game -- let alone the Final Four, or even
past the first council. I am very pleased that I have gotten this far
and I thank my old Robego tribe for winning so many challenges. There
really isn't anything more I can do to magically keep me in the game or
change Mod's or Ambi's mind. However, whichever person you vote off,
make sure not to rush, be calm, think about what you are doing, vote
with your heart, and most importantly -- take this vote seriously. Thank
you.

-Builderz

Nov 6, 2002, 2:18pm

Norn, who are you calling an introvert? I'm not shy, just usually too
busy to talk very much on AW as of late. =)

Hi, everyone. I would have posted sooner, but real life stuff has kept
me occupied. Wow, I still can't believe I've won NGS II and the P-50
world. It is has been an incredible sixteen or so weeks. Like I've said
before, I truly thought I would never make it this far (let alone the
merge or Final Four). I figured, "Eh, not many of you know me. Watch me
be the first one voted off." And now here I am, the winner. *baffle*

Now, I know what you are all thinking, "What is Builderz going to do
with the million dollar prize?" I've been thinking that over, and I will
keep my promise -- each and every survivor (including Nornny, if he
wants) will receive build, bot, and public speaker rights in the world.
I'm not guaranteeing you'll get to keep your rights and land forever,
but you have my word you can keep 'em for at least several long months.

I'm not so sure you should all get eminent domain rights after the
vandalism occurrences at the camps, but if you ask nicely, I may just
give it to you. ;) A P-50 world is pretty darn big, so I'm sure we all
have enough room to share. So far, I haven't heard anything from Flagg
regarding the world. So, if all of you survivors want a stake in it, go
bug him ruthlessly. :)

I couldn't have gotten this far without all of you, the survivors. You
were each unique and contributed something (whether large or small) to
the game. I would like to especially thank the other survivors who were
in the Final Four (Ambient Spirit, Lioness, and Mod). All three of you
were exceptional players and did a marvelous job throughout the game --
and a few of you saved my butt once or twice. ;) I'd also like to thank
Pixelot for taking the heat and being the first voted off. *salutes*

I wanted to write a personal message to each survivor here in this post,
but alas, time is something I don't have right now. I'll keep it brief
and say that you all made the game what it was and deserve a portion of
the world. Furthermore, I hope that there was no hard feelings between
anyone in the game. If you still have any questions for me or want to
know what I really thought about someone or something, then don't
hesitate to ask me. Remember, NGS is just a game -- but the players are
genuine and have real feelings. If I have offended you somehow during
the game, I sincerely apologize and seek your forgiveness.

Sure, you have been voted off one way or another -- but you still get a
piece of the pie. Don't underestimate yourselves, either. You did your
best to outflame, outlast, and outwit the others, and that's what
counts. This entire game was fun, as well as a sort of learning
experience for me. I've made some great friends, heard incredible
stories about incredible people, and have gained a new perspective on
certain things. Your time playing NGS has not been wasted. I consider
you all to be winners in my book.

Finally, I'd like to especially thank Ambient Spirit and Nornny. Ambi
was a great challenger in the game and she deserves the world just as
much as I do. She had real morals and played the game fairly. I'm glad
she got a citizenship extension. As for Nornny, the game just wouldn't
be the same if someone else hosted it. He's put us through crazy
challenges and made us do insane things, but in the end, it all worked
out. Just think of how much time it took him to plan, create, and setup
each and every challenge for us -- and he doesn't even win anything!

-Builderz

P.S. *gives a high five to Syntax*

Nov 14, 2002, 7:48pm

Just a suggestion... XelaG has said more than once in the past that if
you have any feature requests or bugs to report, please do so via
e-mail. You can e-mail him at xelag at 3dee.nl or xelag at digitalspace.com.
He probably does not have the time to read each user's reply in the
newsgroups or to read and reply to everyone's personal telegrams. I have
e-mailed him in the past and have received very quick responses.

-Builderz

Nov 19, 2002, 4:59am

I like the moving sky/clouds and the sun flare effect. The flying
ability and the terrain remind me of the game Tribes. The water looks
good as well and I see that the interface has also changed a bit. Keep
up the good work!

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Dec 21, 2002, 7:36pm

I hate to see an "old timer" such as yourself leave the community. I
guess everything has to run its course at one point or another. Have fun
with The Sims Online. I've played The Sims (not the online version) in
the past and the game is very addicting.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jan 8, 2003, 1:43pm

O_O It sort of looks like a combination of the AW 3.4 beta and a 3D-like
The Sims in another camera angle, with mini-games and vehicles mixed in.
Thanks for the link, Facter! Looks very interesting. I wonder if There
and Linden Lab will go head to head now...

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jan 10, 2003, 12:43pm

I thought you used "Therebucks" to buy those types of things?

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jan 13, 2003, 9:38pm

Very nice work! I especially like the Reboot (not for download) and
Quark avatars.

-Builderz

Jan 15, 2003, 4:41am

If they really want to aim for the "mass market," I think they should
aim for ease of use (i.e., about the same level as AOL). Most
people are used to e-mail and IM programs and it may be a big step going
to a multi-user 3D environment.

Also, I honestly don't see why they don't just release a version for
consoles. I mean, the Xbox (Live!) already has 150,000 subscribers
(though not all will buy There and use it), an Ethernet port, and a
voice headset. Heck, it is even close to the
recommended system requirements with regards to CPU power and graphics
(it has a GeForce in it).

-Builderz

[View Quote] > But anyway - with these requirements, There will neither target the mass
> market (which does not have such an equipment) nor the gamers (which
> will smile about these requirements and demand a better, actual,
> technology), and the number of people in between won't make up the
> 150,000 customers they need (an amazingly high number, btw, almost
> higher than any VR community that has existed yet, but, given the
> graphics, it is quite (sub)standard).

Jan 15, 2003, 4:49am

Is it possible to "fudge" your specs on the beta application form? ;)
Your system is close or better than the recommended hardware
requirements (except for not having a GeForce). The only way they could
probably tell the difference is if they have something coded into the
program that won't make it run if your system hardware isn't what you
say it is or the software "phones home" to their servers and they can
check your system's specs somehow.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jan 27, 2003, 1:55pm

"stupid jpeg SMUDGE" - LOL

As for the bmp file, you could have made it into a GIF and, as a
benefit, would have shaved a few bytes off of it.

-Builderz

Jan 27, 2003, 2:01pm

Ah, Synergy Corp... Does DM still read the NGs?

-Builderz

[View Quote] *snip*
> I've seen so many people grandstanding like you
> in the life of these ngs (even back to synergy corp days - oh, you dont know
> what that is/was.....)

Jan 27, 2003, 10:01pm

I would have to disagree with you on that, Shred. I've e-mailed and
tgrammed Flagg about a world I won as part of Newsgroup Survivor a few
months ago and have still never received a reply. Personal thoughts
aside, I am sorry to hear about Flagg leaving AWI. I wonder what will
happen to all of the Flagg worlds now...

-Builderz

[View Quote] *snip*
>Those two, along with Facter (though short-lived), always seemed to answer every telegram and e-mail no matter how many they got or how busy they were. They went the extra mile.

Jan 29, 2003, 6:53pm

I stand corrected. Flagg saw my post and cleared up the issue (I got the
world) promptly.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jan 30, 2003, 9:42pm

Hope you have a great one, Flagg! Happy birthday.

-Builderz

Jul 5, 2003, 9:41pm

Well, no one is completely anonymous online. The world server logs both
tourist and citizen IP addresses. You can easily see the address if you
have access to the world log files or right-click on someone in a world
if you are a CT or have proper rights. Of course, someone could use one
or more proxies to mask their real IP. There are still ways to track
people down if they use a proxy, the question is if it is worth the time
and effort involved to find them.

Another thing you may be able to do would be to have a bot in the world
that would require people to register a name, e-mail address, or other
things with it. If the person enters the world and doesn't provide the
requested information within X amount of time, they could be ejected or
banned from the world. Of course, this method isn't full proof.

The last idea I have (budget depending) would be to have the museum
purchase a universe separate from the main AW universe. You could have
the main world tourist enabled that just displays basic information
about the museum and the need to register/become a citizen to see the
full "version" of it. The main museum could consist of one or two worlds
with tourist access disabled. Citizenships could either be free or cost
money. Those that would like to see it would then register, and you
would then be able to track them by citizen number, handle, IP address,
e-mail address, etc.

Builderz
http://www.3dhost.net

Jun 23, 2003, 11:21pm

This is a message for those interested in AW hosting (it isn't meant as
spam). I used to host bots and worlds in the past under the Stuff-X
brand name. Now I've launched a new AW hosting service called 3D Host.
Bot, world, object path, and Web site hosting are all available. So, if
you are seeking AW hosting, please stop by:

http://www.3dhost.net

While the color scheme of our site may not be the best, our hosting
can't be beat. :P Thanks.

-Builderz

Jun 24, 2003, 3:07am

You have a nice forum and very low prices for object path/Web hosting.
But what about: a FAQ, network information (for all I know, you could be
hosting on a 56k), a network status page, and backup information (if you
do backups at all)? Get your bot and world hosting ready and then I
might be more worried. ;)

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jun 24, 2003, 2:44pm

Your Web hosting packages offer "Unlimited Transfer." Tsk, tsk. Have a
look at http://www.unlimband.com. At least change it to "unmetered"
instead of "unlimited."

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jun 24, 2003, 5:32pm

Heh, every host under the sun appears to be coming out of the "woodwork"
now.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jun 24, 2003, 5:50pm

O_O JerMe, JerMe...let's not fight. You host Broadway world, I host the
bots for Broadway. Let's be civil about this.

Did you look at http://www.unlimband.com, the site I listed in my reply?
Of course no ISP or Internet connection has an infinite amount of
bandwidth or transfer speed. Can you store an unlimited amount of things
on your hard drive or CD-ROM? Nope. The same applies to bandwidth. And
that was the basis of my reply in reference to Brock's site. If Brock
himself, as a host, doesn't have an "unlimited" connection, then why
does he advertise "Unlimited Transfer" on his Web hosting packages?
There is no such thing. And that is exactly why the
http://www.unlimband.com site was started, to try and inform customers
that it just isn't possible.

What most Web hosts do when they say they offer something "unlimited"
(whether that be disk space, monthly bandwidth use, or something else)
is put a clause deep in their Terms of Service agreement. They may say
on the front of their site that they offer unlimited bandwidth, but
hidden within their service terms, they say something like "If you use
over 5GB of bandwidth per month, your account is at risk for
suspension." So, in essence, it is a form of false advertising. You
don't get anything unlimited -- it is quite the opposite. You are
limited to what the host places in their Terms of Service. Okay, follow
me so far?

Now, Brock didn't say he offered "unlimited bandwidth," but "unlimited
transfer." That is similar, but not the exact same thing. Take a look at
http://www.fdcservers.net/dedicated.html. Do you see that they offer a
"4Mbit speed minimum," but also say "UN-METERED bandwidth?" What that
means is that they don't monitor or measure the amount of bandwidth that
you use UNTIL you go over their limit (which would be 4mbps, in this
case). Then they charge you extra for the overage that you use.

When I replied to Brock, I was suggesting that he change the term
"Unlimited Transfer" on his site to "Unmetered Transfer." What I didn't
mention (and which I think prompted your response) was that he should
have also set some sort of limit as well (such as 128kbps, 5GB a month,
or whatever). So then people could go over the set limit, but their
account wouldn't be terminated (just billed for the extra usage). I
thought that knowledgeable people such as yourself would pick that up
unsaid. Anyway, if you still need more clarification, go make a post at
http://www.webhostingtalk.com. Most people there hate hosts that have
anything "unlimited" to do with them and can flame worse than Eep.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jun 24, 2003, 6:05pm

Read:
http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=153982&highlight=unlimited
http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=157203&highlight=unlimited

I never heard someone use the term "unlimited" in the sense of a
connection having "power" or not.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

Jun 24, 2003, 6:11pm

Now you are starting to make more sense. But there is still a limit to
what you can physically transfer over a line. For example, you can only
transfer so much data over a copper connection versus a fiber optic one.
But I get your point. ;) It is just that most people in the Web hosting
industry would be "turned off" by offering "unlimited" anything.

-Builderz

[View Quote]

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